Surprise of the Day

Here's a big, bronze colored white perch that I caught today
while fishing for stripers.

I was in a spot today catching small schoolies.  In the mix, I hooked what I thought was a bigger schoolie. To my surprise it turned out to be a big white perch. In fact, this perch was one of the biggest ones I have caught in recent years.  The fish was a darkish, bronze color, unlike the silvery ones I have caught in the past.  It could be the bottom color where it resided.  The perch hit a Zoom fluke mounted on a half ounce jighead.
White perch are a mystery fish here in RI.  They reside in many of the brackish waters of the state. Experts will tell you that they move between the brackish and fresh water to feed.  However, I have caught many in pure saltwater. They are also landlocked in many big lakes and river systems.  The landlocked variety are considerably smaller than the saltwater/brackish white perch.
I have been piecing together my fishing and focusing on spots where I can find some sort of parking (not easy to do).  Today I parked in a private spot and had to walk about half a mile to the shore. The oecanfront continues to be a mess with parking with just about everywhere shut down.  The Bay is slightly better. But, overall, it is not good. I've heard horror stories of fishermen being kicked out of spots.
As for the fish, migrating stripers are now in both the Bay and along the oceanfront. It's a very early start, and they have been around for about a week now. I haven't seen big numbers yet, but they are around.
Very frustrating when you know the fish are around, but you can't access deserted shorelines because the parking is shut down in most places.
 It's one thing to be safe, another to be reasonable. Parking restrictions along the water in much of the state is unreasonable.